


Prompt# 64: "It's two sugars, right?"

by Xylianna



Series: Xy's 100 Ways Challenge [22]
Category: Final Fantasy VI
Genre: Consent is Sexy, F/F, Fluff, Polyamory, Post-Canon, mentions of Daryl/Setzer/Celes and variations thereof, mentions of Terra/Edgar, smut with feels
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-11-16
Updated: 2018-11-16
Packaged: 2019-08-24 16:06:33
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,273
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16643432
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Xylianna/pseuds/Xylianna
Summary: Celes pays an overdue visit to Terra.





	Prompt# 64: "It's two sugars, right?"

**Author's Note:**

  * For [runicmagitek](https://archiveofourown.org/users/runicmagitek/gifts).



> This takes place in the same world as my FFVI megafic, Awakenings, but works as a standalone I believe. It contains minor spoilers for Awakenings - mostly regarding who ends up with who romantically, and that *gasp* the good guys won.

Celes wasn’t certain why she was nervous. Sure, it had been nearly three years since she’d seen Terra - at the ten year anniversary of Kefka’s defeat - but things hadn’t really changed. She still wandered the world with Setzer and Daryl, and Terra still spent her days ruling over Figaro along with her husband, Edgar. Their adopted daughter, Madonna, would be a teenager now, Celes mused with a sly grin quirking her full lips. She bet her friends were thinking back fondly to the days of fighting dragons and insane mages.

She had asked her lovers to drop her off a few miles away from the castle and used the walk to give herself time to think. Celes had a lot of time for thinking - a stark contrast to the constant rush of wartime. She treasured it though, and while her partners never crowded her more than she wished, sometimes it was nice to be alone.

The Figaroan desert always reminded her of the late General Leo, for some reason. Now there was a true hero, struck down in his prime. _At least he’s been avenged_ , Celes thought with grim satisfaction. She wished she’d been able to know him better, but their age gap meant they didn’t grow up together, and their duties kept them far too busy to form more than the most nascent beginnings of a friendship. Not that Celes was permitted a normal childhood… but her failure to form a deeper bond with Leo was one of her true regrets. She felt they could have been kindred spirits, and maybe averted some of Kefka’s horrors had they but worked together.

Her thoughts honed back in on the present as she approached the outer palisade of Figaro Castle. A town had sprung up between the outer and inner bulwarks, centered around trading. Celes shrugged and decided to browse the stalls; she knew neither Terra nor Edgar expected her to arrive bearing gifts, but maybe she’d find something to take back to Setzer and Daryl. Or something for herself.

“Lovely lady,” a merchant’s unctuous voice interrupted Celes’s perusal of a stack of books. “Please, do look at my wares! I have the finest Marandan silk flowers! Hand crafted by a heroic Doman Knight!”

Celes’s face lit up. She knew Cyan had returned to Doma, but to her chagrin, hadn’t kept up with him much. They had always had an uneasy accord at best, and while Doma Castle was a part of the annual tour they took on the Falcon, it was usually Setzer who actually spent time in Doma to check in with their ally. She smiled as she recalled all the silk roses he had painstakingly made to cheer a bereft woman’s heart after the world was broken, and her smile broadened recalling how that fairy tale had ended - with the two wed, and living in Doma together.

But Celes had had no idea Cyan continued to make the flowers. As she perused the merchant’s wares, his chatter falling on deaf ears, golden brows winged upward in surprise. He’d definitely branched out from roses. Figaroan cactus flowers, of course, but also Narshe lilies, Veldt wildflowers, and many more than Celes could accurately name.

She felt drawn to a pink, tropical blossom and asked the merchant what it was. It appeared similar to a rose, but smaller, the brilliance of the hue making up for the small size.

“Ah, we call that a desert rose,” the merchant winked. “No flower such as this truly blossoms in our desert, but it was created in honor of the Queen.”

Understanding flooded storm gray eyes, and Celes picked up her favorite from the pile. “I’ll take this one.” It seemed she was bearing a gift for Terra after all… though Celes was tempted to keep this for herself, for remembrance. A little piece of her oldest friend to carry with her on her endless journey of exploration.

“Perhaps, gracious lady, this one might suit as well?” His eyes twinkled at Celes’s gasp. Cyan had made a Vector daffodil, the silk of the blossom nearly identical to her own hair. 

She agreed and paid hastily, heart pounding with impatience as she waited for him to wrap her treasures. Once she obtained the tiny package, Celes ignored the rest of the bazaar and made her way to the castle gates.

Despite being recognized at once, one of the guards insisted on sending for the Royal Chamberlain. Celes rolled her eyes, irritated at the delay now that she was so close to her objective.

“Celes!” A voice as clear and bright as a bell sang out. “Oh, why aren’t you letting her in?”

At Terra’s approach, Celes thought - as she did every visit, she admitted to herself - how much age had ripened the half-Esper’s beauty. She’d been a stunning child, in a fey sort of way, with that emerald hair and eyes just a shade darker. Terra had always been thin - too thin, at times - and the angular features of her youth had softened now into something rounder, though Celes still couldn’t see an ounce of fat on the Queen’s body.

Perhaps she studied her friend too long, too intensely, for the other woman coughed delicately, causing Celes’s cheeks to heat with a blush.

“Join me?” Terra said cheerfully, linking her arm with Celes’s before she could answer. “Oh, I’m so glad you’re here! Are you hungry? Thirsty? I can send for—”

Celes cut Terra off, knowing from experience that at times like this, it was the only way to get a word in edgewise. “Tea would be nice.”

After beseeching a passing servant, Terra turned her brilliant smile back on Celes full force. She chattered about Figaro, about young Madonna, becoming more quarrelsome as she underwent puberty, about Edgar, and how he’d fallen well into the role of King despite his best efforts to bring democracy to his kingdom.

She spoke little of herself, though, and Celes noticed. 

“What of you?” she pressed as they entered Terra’s quarters. Celes took a chair across from the one Terra chose, the small table between them perfectly positioned for their coming tea. “I want to know what you’ve been up to.”

“Well, I do my part to manage the kingdom, and I help with the children in the creche,” Terra began. “I also make sure to tour the market, and visit South Figaro, an—”

“Not your duties,” Celes interjected. “What do you do for _you_?”

Terra blinked wide jade eyes. “Oh. Um.” She appeared totally at a loss for words, a charming flush highlighting delicate facial features. “I… try to take a long bath once a week? With a book?”

The way her voice lilted those statements into questions told Celes everything she needed to know. The servant bearing the tea arrived, however, so she held her tongue until he had left.

Before Terra could complete what Celes assumed she’d see as a hostess’s duty, Celes reached out to pour. “It’s two sugars, right?” Terra had always had a weakness for sweet things, and judging by her narrow waist, she didn’t indulge terribly often.

“Please,” Terra said timidly, and Celes wondered at this magnificent woman - a Queen, a mother, a heroine, the last living Esper despite her loss of magic - being so shy and reticent in private. Perhaps it was calming to Terra to be allowed to be her true introverted self once in a while, Celes mused. She wasn’t of a mind to force her to false behavior, no matter what her kingdom expected of her.

After passing Terra a cup of tea, Celes poured one for herself. She picked up the thread of their previous conversation, asking archly, “And when did you last take one of those relaxing, luxurious baths?”

The deepening of Terra’s blush answered before she could. “Um… it’s been a while.”

“It’s settled then,” Celes announced, sipping her tea. “You’re taking one today. Right now. I’ll prepare it for you just as soon as I’ve drank my tea.”

“But, you don’t have to…” Terra protested weakly.

“If I don’t, will you?” Celes asked bluntly. Terra’s silence was the confirmation she needed.

Finishing her tea like it was a shot of whiskey was perhaps not the best way to appreciate the beverage, but now that she had a mission, nothing else seemed important. She rose and crossed to the doors, opening them and instructing a passing servant that the Queen was not to be disturbed the rest of the afternoon. And then she locked them, smirking at how loud the mechanism clicked. One of Edgar’s inventions, no doubt, but a handy one. Perhaps she could get him to install one of these fancy locks on her quarters aboard the Falcon.

Crossing the room, Celes pointed a finger at Terra as she noticed her friend begin to rise. “Sit! I’ve got this.”

Terra’s eyes shot wide - clearly, she was unaccustomed to being commanded these days. But those green depths shone with appreciation and affection. “All right. I’ll just enjoy my tea.”

Celes grinned approvingly before she ducked into the bathing chamber. A low whistle of surprise escaped her. She had figured Terra was surrounded by luxurious things, living in a castle and all, but nothing had prepared her for the lush opulence of this room.

It contained a marble tub massive enough for six people, hung all around with gauzy red fabric as if to separate the tub from the rest of the room while still keeping some visibility in tact. Candles were piled everywhere, and Celes selected a few with pleasing scents - though she couldn’t name them. She lit them, and then flipped the switch to turn off the electric lighting - how the Figaroan’s had devised that technology was beyond Celes, but she enjoyed the lights they’d installed on the airship during their last visit.

It took Celes a few minutes, but she figured out how to turn on the tub and adjust the temperature. She poured a generous dollop from a bottle on the tub’s edge, pleased when the way it bubbled up confirmed her guess on its contents.

_Whew._ The room’s temperature was climbing quickly. Taking a ribbon from her pocket - now a simple scrap of fabric, no longer imbued with arcane properties - Celes tied her hair back from her sweaty face. She also stripped off her jacket, shoes, and socks, until she stood in a simple short sleeved linen shirt and cotton trousers.

Stopping the flow from the faucet before the tub filled too much, Celes located a shelf of towels and grabbed three, piling them beside the tub. One last look around, and she nodded in satisfaction. It looked very relaxing. She’d make Terra a fresh cup of tea while she undressed and climbed in, and then they could gossip idly while her friend soaked, unless she preferred her book. Celes wouldn’t be offended either way.

Celes gasped when she walked back into the main chamber, finding Terra completely nude. As Celes watched, the Queen finished piling her garments into a hamper and straightened with a smile, apparently unconcerned with her nudity.

“Is it ready?” Terra asked eagerly, wrapping a bathrobe around herself.

“Y-yeah,” Celes stammered. Terra was very definitely no longer the whip-thin young woman she’d been a decade ago; desert living seemed to agree with her. While her curves were perhaps not as lush as Daryl’s, or Celes’s own, the image of Terra’s firm, pink-tipped breasts and round hips was one that would stay with Celes forever.

Coughing and trying to regain a sense of equilibrium, Celes grinned and affected the same unctuous tone the flower merchant had taken with her earlier. “Right this way, Your Majesty.” Terra flinched at the honorific even as it made something deep in Celes’s core purr to utter it. That was nothing new; she enjoyed a bit of power play in her private life.

“Please, not so formal,” Terra giggled as she walked into the bathing chamber. 

Celes was right on her heels, and in fact crashed into the diminutive woman when Terra stopped. _Focus_ she berated herself. _Less on Terra’s ass and more on not_ being _one_.

“May I help you into the tub?” Celes asked deferentially, and she wasn’t playing anymore. She just hoped she wasn’t too bold.

Terra turned solemn green eyes to study Celes a long moment. Eventually she nodded. “Please.” She held out her arms and waited, having become accustomed to being attended.

Celes knew she wouldn’t be as graceful as Terra’s trained servants, but she did her best. She couldn’t help the way her breath drew in so sharply when she untied Terra’s robe, nor the way she sighed as it slipped from slim shoulders to reveal creamy skin. Offering Terra a hand, she stood steady as the shorter woman stepped into the tub, not releasing her hold until Terra had lowered her delicate frame beneath the frothy water.

“Scrub my back?” Terra asked, and if Celes didn’t know better, she’d say it was flirtation mingled with challenge flashing in those verdant eyes and canting those ruby lips.

“As my lady wishes,” she cooed, reaching for a loofah.

“Not with that,” Terra said sharply. “Do you know nothing?”

Celes’s heart pounded in time with the throbbing between her thighs. There was no mistaking it; Terra was coming on to her. Playing a game with her. 

But to what end?

Celes assumed the mantle of the chastised servant girl. “I’m terribly sorry. I _am_ untrained, and know nothing… as you say, Your Majesty.” She formed Terra’s title with relish, lingering on the syllables in a way Terra couldn’t miss.

From the humor flaring behind green eyes, she hadn’t. “Use your hands, girl. And this soap,” Terra passed her a small bottle, and hen Celes opened it she smelled Marandan roses, reminding her again of the gift she had in her jacket. Making a mental note that she was certain to forget later, Celes lathered the soap between calloused hands and leaned forward, hesitating a heartbeat from touching her friend.

“It’s okay, Celes,” Terra murmured reassuringly, as if reading her mind. “If I didn’t truly wish this, I wouldn’t be here right now. And Edgar agreed.”

Knowing that Terra’s husband consented was the last bit of encouragement Celes needed. With care-filled gentleness, she smoothed her soapy hands over Terra’s slim shoulders, massaging her way down the line of Terra’s spine.

Terra sighed. “That feels lovely. More of that, please.”

“Yes, Your Majesty,” Celes cooed, finding comfort in her role in this delectable charade. 

Words faded to silence as Celes thoroughly soaped and washed Terra’s back from her hairline to her tailbone. She massaged the tense muscles she found along the way, paying attention to the way Terra’s breath would hiss or sigh to know when she found a sore spot, when to increase pressure, when to ease off.

“Girl,” Terra snapped, breaking Celes out of her almost meditative trance. When she lifted her eyes to meet Terra’s, she bit her lip at the hungry look glinting in jade depths.

“There’s more to me than my back,” Terra said acerbically, her timbre at odds with the tender look flaring in her eyes.

Celes found herself unable to speak, but dipped her head in what she hopped was a subservient enough gesture to go along with their unexpected role-play. She skimmed her soapy hands along Terra’s sides before removing them, then squirted a fresh dollop of the rose scented soap into one palm. If she looked close enough, she could swear she saw Terra trembling - with nerves? Anticipation? A bit of both? Triad knew, Celes was feeling the same.

She had her storm-cloud eyes as wide as they’d go, for this was a scene Celes didn’t want to miss a second of. Reaching out, she lay her hands on Terra’s shoulders, and again slid them down her back. Hearing Terra’s dissatisfied grumble, Celes smirked, tempted to jibe about ‘patience’ but not wanting to break character. Rather than moving her palms back up to Terra’s shoulder blades, she curved her hands around, fingers flexing against the softness of Terra’s belly before slipping with excruciating slowness over her ribs, until the edges of her hands brushed the underside of Terra’s small, firm breasts. When Celes cupped those delicious breasts - perfectly sized for her strong hands - she wasn’t sure who moaned first, herself or Terra.

“More,” Terra mewled, and Celes knew the time for games had passed. Pressing her lips to the crown of that emerald-maned head, she squeezed Terra’s breasts, thumbing at the nipples until they stood erect.

“Tell me to stop if it’s too much,” she whispered into Terra’s ear, deliberately allowing her lips to brush the delicate shell of her ear. She took Terra’s whimper as a plea for her to continue, and pinched the slighter woman’s nipples between her thumbs and forefingers, simultaneously kissing the side of her neck.

Water sloshed over the edge of the tub as Terra squirmed, and Celes smiled sensuously. Never in her wildest dreams had she imagined she’d be kneeling in Terra’s bathing chamber with her breasts in her hands, but she certainly wasn’t going to look a gift chocobo in the mouth. Celes played with those pink-capped mounds until Terra’s every exhalation was a pant, her every inhalation a gasp.

And the she slid her right hand down, leaning forward so that even though she couldn’t make true eye contact, she could still watch Terra’s beautiful face.

Stunning beautiful she was, those elfin figures transfixed with desire, her mouth open in a soft “o” shape, the blush spreading from her cheeks down to her chest. Celes gently flicked at Terra’s nipple as her other hand delved between those creamy thighs, beneath the bubble-covered surface of the bath. She cupped Terra’s mound in her hand loosely, and even that was enough to make the other woman buck against her hand and cry out. Goddesses, she was _so_ responsive, Celes felt herself growing wet beneath her clothing, even untouched as she was.

“You’re wonderful,” she said reverently, releasing Terra’s breast and wrapping her left arm loosely around her shoulders in an affectionate embrace. Giving up the exquisite sight of her best friend’s face, she pressed her cheek to Terra’s, reveling in the heat she felt there. It was almost as if Terra’s fire magic was back singing in her veins, so hot her skin burned against Celes’s.

And that was nothing compared to the heat she found when she traced one fingertip down the seam of Terra’s labia.

And _that_ incomparable to the molten fire of Terra’s core, when Celes pressed that finger within her to the first knuckle.

“Yes!” Terra cried, rocking her hips to fully embrace that questing finger.

Celes slid her left hand down, cleverly finding Terra’s clit and working it gently while she thrust the finger of her other hand within her.

“You like that, sweetheart?” she purred, nipping at the corner of Terra’s lips. “Do you know how long I’ve wanted to do this?” She added a second finger, and increased the speed of her other hand. “How I’ve wished to see you undone with passion?” Celes moaned before lightly biting Terra’s neck, suckling at the delicate flesh until she knew she’d leave a mark behind.

She wondered if the love-bite would cause Edgar to feel envy, or desire. But she didn’t really care in that moment.

Celes pressed a tender kiss to the spot she’d bitten, and flexed her hand where it moved within Terra’s hot embrace. Her other fingers never stilled in their diligent attention to her friend’s clit.

“I want to hear you,” she ordered, no longer constrained by the guise of servant girl. “Let me hear you, Terra? Please?”

“Oh-okay,” Terra gasped, turning her head so wild eyes could cleave unto Celes’s visage. “I… I’ve never… oh _Triad_ , I’ve wanted this!” her words edged towards a shriek, and Celes felt the inner walls of her pussy clench around her fingers. “I’m going to… going to… oh, _Celes_!”

Terra came as beautifully as she did everything else, though her graceful airs were gone, stolen by the moment of tempestuous passion. She writhed beneath Celes’s touch, and Celes relented, removing her hand from Terra’s clit and cupping a breast with it instead, not ceasing the rhythmic motions of her penetration until Terra grabbed her wrist and whined. Celes instantly heeded the unspoken request, withdrawing her touch and bowing forward to give Terra a sweet, lingering kiss, the ends of her blonde ponytail landing in the soapy water.

“How did that feel?” Celes asked, feeling momentarily anxious.

“So good,” Terra said drowsily. “I knew it would be.”

Celes smiled, and pushed wet hair away from Terra’s face. “Want me to help you out?”

“Please,” Terra giggled. “I don’t want to drown!”

Celes helped her climb from the tub on shaky legs, and she led Terra to her bed after wrapping her in a massive, fluffy towel. “Let me go clean up,” she said.“I’ll be right back.”

“I already miss you,” Terra said so sweetly that it made Celes’s heart ache.

Going back to the bathing room, Celes made short work of draining the water from the tub and blowing out the candles. She grabbed her discarded jacket, shoes, and other belongings, carrying them with her to the main chamber.

Soft snores announced that the Queen of Figaro had fallen fast asleep in the brief minutes it had taken Celes to clean up. She wasn’t upset in the slightest; Terra _needed_ some rest, and if Celes could help her to find it, all the better. But a glance at the clock proved she couldn’t linger much longer; Setzer and Daryl would be worried if she was late. Feeling torn, Celes pulled out the silk flowers. She would keep the desert rose as a token, and leave the Vector daffodil for Terra. Finding a piece of paper and pen on Terra’s writing desk, Celes scrawled out a quick note. She lay it beneath the silk flower just beside Terra’s outstretched hand; she’d be sure to find it when she woke. 

As silent as a ghost, Celes let herself out of the chamber. She met Terra’s maidservant in the corridor and told her that she had aided the Queen in her ablutions and now Her Majesty was sleeping. Judging from the pleased smile on the maid’s face, Terra didn’t rest nearly enough.

* * *

When Terra woke up, she could tell it was evening from the way the sunset cast amber light over her bedchamber.

She was also alone.

She sat up, uncaring about the way her towel fell away. No one was here to see her nakedness, anyway, and no one who had license to enter these chambers unbidden would be appalled to find her in a state of dishabille.

Where was Celes?

Terra cast mournful eyes beside her, at the empty spot on the bed. She immediately noticed the silk flower and note, and picked them up hurriedly. The flower she lay on her thigh; the note, she unfolded and read.

_My sweet Terra,_

_I hope you know that when I visited, I had no idea that things would go as they did. But I can’t say I’m unhappy with the turn of events. I’ve dreamed of such things for years, but had no idea you felt the same way. I’m only sorry I couldn’t sleep at your side. Daryl and Setzer will be waiting for me, and I don’t want to make them worry._

_This flower is made in the fashion of a Vector daffodil. I purchased it, along with a lovely desert rose, at one of the shops in the bazaar outside the castle gates. Look at it and think of me; I shall look upon the desert rose and think of you, my own sweet desert rose._

_If you have need of me, send a bird. Setzer and Edgar say they have worked out the training of pigeons who can find the Falcon._

_We will be back in the usual time… sooner if I have my way._

_Yours,_

_Celes_

Terra sat quietly holding the parchment as the sun set and the moon rose. She didn’t rise from her bed to turn on the lamps, and so when her husband came to her chambers, he found her sitting in the dark.

“Are you all right?” he asked solicitously, wrapping a blanket around her naked shoulders.

“I miss her,” Terra said, her voice breaking. 

Edgar instantly understood. “Was it... as we discussed?”

“Yes,” Terra said. “And no. Nothing could have prepared me for that. For her.”

“You love her,” Edgar whispered, kissing Terra’s forehead.

“I do,” she agreed. “And I also love you.”

She set about showing him her love until the sun began to rise once more.

* * *

Long miles from Figaro, the Falcon soared through cerulean skies. Celes stood at the prow, her hair unbound and whipping in the wind.

Setzer approached her; Daryl manned the helm.

“How was your visit?” he asked, and while his tone lacked any innuendo, Celes wasn’t fooled. He knew her too well not to have an inkling of what had happened.

“Too short,” she responded, drawing him close until his front pressed to her back. When his wiry arms wrapped around her waist, she sighed in pleasure, resting her cheek against his heartbeat.

“We’ll go back soon,” he promised. “We have no wish to keep you overlong from your newest love.”

_My newest love? My oldest love, if I’m honest_ , Celes thought.

And, she hoped, as lasting a love as she’d found with Setzer and Daryl.

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading! <3


End file.
